ABSTRACT
The UK’s National Cervical Cancer Screening Programme The UK cervical cancer-screening programme was introduced in 1988 to prevent cervical cancer. Women are screened between the ages of 25 and 65 years with a 3-year interval for women aged over 25 and a 5-year interval for women aged over 50. Women aged over 65 are tested only if they have not been screened since the age of 50 or have had a recent abnormal test. Samples are taken from the squamo-columnar junction and are investigated for cervical intraepithelial neoplasms (CIN). Cellular abnormalities (dyskaryosis) are graded as mild, moderate or severe. CIN are pre-malignant cells that can develop into cervical cancer.
